How ESPN’s FPI Projects The Pac-12 Standings Will Look At Season’s End

BOULDER, CO - SEPTEMBER 10: A member of the California Golden Bears warms up prior to facing the Colorado Buffaloes at Folsom Field on September 10, 2011 in Boulder, Colorado. (Photo by Doug Pensinger/Getty Images)

We’re roughly one month away from the start of college football, and that means it’s that time of the year where preseason predictions are coming out. Earlier this week, ESPN released the latest version of its Football Power Index for this fall.

The Football Power Index (FPI) is a measure of team strength that is meant to be the best predictor of a team’s performance going forward for the rest of the season. FPI represents how many points above or below average a team is. Projected results are based on 10,000 simulations of the rest of the season using FPI, results to date, and the remaining schedule. Ratings and projections update daily.

The highest-ranked team in the Pac-12 is Oregon, which makes sense because Justin Herbert is back for his final season. However, the gap between the Ducks and the second-ranked team in the conference isn’t that noticeable.

Let’s see how the entire Pac-12 looks based off the projected records.

Pac-12 North:

Oregon (9.7-2.9)

Washington (9.1-3.3)

Washington State (7.4-4.7)

Stanford (6.2-5.9)

Cal (4.8-7.2)

Oregon State (3.1-8.9)

Pac-12 South:

Utah (8.6-3.8)

UCLA (7.8-4.5)

Arizona State (7.0-5.1)

USC (6.7-5.5)

Arizona (5.4-6.6)

Colorado (4.0-8.1)

A reminder this is based off the projected records for each Pac-12 program, not the actual FPI ranking.

It appears Stanford and USC can be in for another uncharacteristic season according to these projections. On the flip side, the future is looking bright for Chip Kelly and UCLA.